ISTANBUL (CIHAN) - Some three thousand Anti-NATO protesters clashed with Turkish security forces in Istanbul on Monday as the NATO summit opened.
Three thousand protesters, gathered in Okmeydani Fatma Girik Park to protest the NATO Summit, wanted to march to Mecidiyekoy. Anti-terror teams and gendarmerie team did not allow it. The protesters then clashed with police and threw Molotov cocktails and rocks while police retaliated with tear gases and truncheons.
Protesters were trying to enter the NATO summit valley, cordoned off by security fences.
Police detained several protesters. Several people were affected from the tear gases. Traffic around Mecidiyekoy came to standstill. A military helicopter flew over the protesters while an armed vehicle with water canons was ready to intervene.
The demonstration is still in progress.
Thousands of people marched on Sunday in the Kadiköy section of Istanbul to protest NATO and US President George W. who visited the Ankara ahead of the NATO Summit in Istanbul. Nearly 30 thousand protesters backed by protesters from Syria, Jordan, England and Greece attended the demonstrations.
Turkish and foreign NGOs are holding joint mass demonstrations to protest NATO and America during the NATO Summit in Istanbul today and tomorrow. The Istanbul governor`s office has designated 19 places in Istanbul where legal protests may take place
Security across Turkey is under the spotlight in the build-up to the NATO Summit to be held in Istanbul on June 28-29 (today and tomorrow). Istanbul is under air, sea and land security watch during the NATO summit.